


A Moment of Reprieve

by amadeusofnohr



Series: FE Femslash Weeks 2018 [6]
Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/F, Nohr | Conquest Route, Plotless, Pre-Femslash, Slightly bittersweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-17
Updated: 2018-03-17
Packaged: 2019-04-01 09:15:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13995135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amadeusofnohr/pseuds/amadeusofnohr
Summary: Azura stumbles upon Felicia attempting to clean in the middle of night, and benevolently offers to assist her. Via blatant misuse of her water powers.(For FE Femslash Week 2018, day 6: bubbly)





	A Moment of Reprieve

Azura can’t remember the last time she got a full night of sleep. When she closes her eyes, all she can see are the faces of her Hoshidan siblings. Sakura’s crying face, the pity and sorrow in Hinoka’s eyes when she heard of how Azura was to be cast out so unjustly. The anger in Takumi’s when he found out that she had joined up with the Nohrians. If she’s lucky, all she sees is the chaos of the battlefield they walk daily. The guilt eats at her.

It’s easier to stay awake, reading books or wandering the halls of the castle. The whole thing thrums with the magic that Lilith used to create it, providing ample distraction from the thoughts inside her head. She’s humming idly as she walks, running a hand across the smooth stone of the castle wall as she goes, tracing out her path.

Her eyes drift closed after a while, confident in the direction she’s taking. She passes through here often enough that she can’t get lost, even with her eyes shut. Unfortunately, even she can be taken by surprise. The ground beneath her feet turns slippery, and down she goes, her head smacking onto the ground with a loud _thunk_.

“Lady Azura!” Someone’s shaking her. She hasn’t even been on the ground for a full ten seconds. She sits up, pushing away her over-eager savior and brushing the hair from her eyes so she can see them.

“Felicia?” It’s approximately three in the morning. “What are you doing here?” The maid scratches the back of her head nervously, gesturing at the hallway before them. There’s water all over, with the occasional soapy bubble. A bucket full of suds and rags sits in the corner.

“Cleaning.” Azura wouldn’t define the current state of the hall as anywhere near “clean.” Felicia springs back to her feet, determination glittering in her eyes. Where she’s pulling the energy from, Azura doesn’t know, but somehow just seeing Felicia like that makes her feel more awake.

“I will not rest until I finish! I, uh, was actually only assigned a small portion of the hall, but I knocked over the bucket of water and figured I might as well clean the whole thing.” There’s an awful lot of hallway left.

“Would you care for some assistance?” Felicia gasps.

“You’re too kind, Lady Azura! I can handle this, though, really. I won’t let some stupid water get the best of me.” If Azura slipped that easily, Felicia is going to fare about as well as a mouse in a wyvern nest.

Sure enough, her very first step back towards the bucket goes wrong, her foot immediately losing its grip. Instinctively, Azura reaches out to steady her, tugging her back by the arm.

“I’ve got this,” Felicia insists unconvincingly. She resorts to an awkward crouch, keeping her center of gravity low and taking each step as slow as possible, holding her skirts up to keep them away from the water. Azura covers a giggle. It’s the most ridiculous thing she’s seen in a long while.

She eyes the bucket in the corner, a terrible idea blooming in her mind. Felicia’s back is to her. She raises a hand to her necklace, grasping it tightly to hide the tell-tale glow. The water in the bucket spirals upwards, the rags flopping to the ground sadly. It splashes into Felicia with great force, sending her skidding onto her butt.

“I’ll get you for that,” Felicia growls, furrowing her brow in concentration before snapping. Azura goes to back away, but the ground beneath her has frozen over. She manages to right herself, only for the next patch of floor she steps on to _also_ turn to ice. Felicia can’t be allowed to have control of the terrain for much longer.

Azura sweeps out a hand, sending a wave of water in Felicia’s direction. The maid is forced to abandon her assault, instead freezing the entire wave of water. A second wave crashes over her, this one from behind. She can’t freeze what she can’t see.

What follows next is a horrid misuse of magical power. It ends with Felicia lunging for Azura, only to fall on top of her instead, sending them both tumbling to the ground. Azura attempts to roll them over so that she can pin Felicia more efficiently, but by now they’re both covered from head to toe in water and soap, skin too slick to easily grip.

Azura gives in, and Felicia lets out a triumphant cry as she secures her grip on Azura’s hands. Her face is slightly red with exertion, and she’s grinning madly down at Azura, her hair dripping onto Azura's face. Azura can’t help but smile right back. She can barely remember what dream it was that kept her from sleep tonight, and right now she feels like she could fall asleep right here, cozy underneath Felicia.

She feels warmth bubbling inside her stomach, and she realizes she might be in over her head. Felicia’s already back on her feet, futilely attempting to wring all the water from her clothing.

“Allow me.” Azura twirls a finger, pulling all the water out of Felicia’s clothes and placing it back in the bucket. Felicia nods her thanks, turning her gaze sheepishly back to the hall. Generously put, it isn’t the worst state Azura’s ever seen a hall in. But it is most definitely not any cleaner than it was at the start.

“If we work together, we should be able to finish by dawn.” Felicia nods, that determined fire back in her eyes. Azura feels inordinately pleased that she’s accepting her help without protest this time.

She grabs a rag and opts to clean without use of her powers. Her fingers ache already, the same way her throat does after a long battle. They twitch involuntarily at the reminder that her time with Corrin’s army is likely limited. She lets her eyes linger on Felicia. Would it be unfair of her to attempt a relationship, knowing she won’t survive this war? It’s a question for her to ponder later. For now, she just focuses on scrubbing.


End file.
